The present invention is directed to a method for the production of a pedestal assembly which includes a molded collar portion.
Accessory furniture which may be employed in, for example, the health care industry, is well known. Such furniture includes a pedestal assembly which supports a functional component such as a table, tray, storage unit, etc. Such pedestal assemblies have also been used in chairs and related furniture. It is often desirable for the base portion of such a pedestal assembly to have a protective or ornamental coating. Polyurethane coatings have been employed to provide such protection as well as to enhance the aesthetic aspects of the pedestal assembly.
Such coatings have been provided by means of injection molding wherein the base portion of the pedestal assembly is coated with an injected molding material (e.g., polyurethane) under elevated temperature and pressure. However, such injection molding operations, while successful, have not always been conducted with efficiency when the pedestal assembly to be coated with the molding material is three-dimensional in configuration (i.e., when the pedestal assembly comprises a horizontally-oriented base member and a vertically-oriented supporting structure). In such an instance, a portion of the assembly such as the vertically-oriented supporting structure will normally extend from the injection mold and means must be provided to prevent the injected molding material from exiting from the mold via the annular space between the mold and the surface of the supporting structure.
While various means have been employed to seal the annular space between the supporting structure which extends from the mold and the interior of the mold, such means (e.g., slides, seals, etc.) often result in the formation of an uneven and unattractive edge or parting line which results in an unacceptable appearance. The use of such means also necessitates additional effort during the molding operation.
It would thus be desirable to provide an improved method for the production of a pedestal assembly which method enables the base portion of the pedestal assembly to be provided with a coating by means of injection molding which coating exhibits an acceptable appearance and which method enables enhanced efficiency to be obtained.